When It All Started
by arrissuu
Summary: A story inspired by the memories Leo shows Mattie in 1.06; about moving into the new house, the creation of the conscience Synths, and his death/"resurrection". Please R&R! :) -See warnings and disclaimer in ch.1- [A short layout can be found in ch.2]
1. The New Home

**~Disclaimer: HUMANS belongs to AMC and its creators. I own only the idea of this story, and even so its base is the memories and behavior of the character Leo Elster. A few of my written scenes will be taken from S1EP6. Furthermore, this will be my only posting of the disclaimer, but it applies to all future chapters of this fanfiction~  
** **Warnings: Spoilers for Leo's past, minor cussing, perhaps future violence. If the occasion comes up, injuries may be a bit too graphic for those with weak stomachs around blood. Leo and Beatrice's death may hold triggers. These apply to all future chapters as well.  
** **So this is basically an idea sprouted from the memories Leo shows Mattie in S1EP6, and from Leo's behavior and actions. It's my version of Leo's life ever since moving to the new house. No time frame will be given except seasons and the time passed between chapters, as dates are never given. There will be quite a few times skips in the earlier chapters. As of right now, I expect there to be a very few chapters on moving in, Mia being created, and maybe one or two on Mia and Leo's relationship. After that, the main focus will be on the other conscience Synths being created and Leo's "death".  
** **Whew! After all that, onto the story!**

* * *

"Whoa, this place is huge!"The boy shouted in excitement, practically leaping from the backseat before the car was even at a complete stop. Forgetting-or ignoring was probably more likely-all of his things in the boot, he stumbled onto the dirt driveway and sprinted to the front door. His dad had moved all their stuff ahead of time, so this was the first he had seen of the new house. Him and his mother had come with the last bit of their possessions from the old house.

And he was absolutely right. The Elster's new home was, in fact, huge. The property itself was enormous, woods behind the four story house (ground floor and second level, with basement and attic included) and to the side. A couple of apple trees dotted the lawn, most with plenty of branches to climb. The house itself was brick, and obviously ages old but in very good condition. He could spot a chimney on top, and was already bouncing with joy at the prospect of all the fun times he could have here. There was even a lake in front of the house! Of course, it was very isolated, quite a few miles from the stores and schools, and even farther from David's head lab, but he was okay with that. His father had never really liked attention, he always said it was bad for his mum. She had always been sick, but the past two years had been really bad for Beatrice. He had never gotten along well with the other children anyway.

He skidded to a halt in front of the door, his jet black hair tossed messily by the light breeze of coming autumn. All the trees had lush green leaves, but it wouldn't be long before they turned yellow and orange.

While he inspected the porch, David rushed to the passenger side of the car to help Beatrice out. She slept most of the way, which was good. Gently shaking her awake, David led the silent woman out to the front of the car, pausing only to hand her her handbag and the keys to the front door.

"Go inside," he murmured, "I've already set up the essentials. Our room is on the second floor." Without a word, she ambled up to the door and, completely ignoring him, went inside.

Used to this treatment (Beatrice often swung into many different moods with people), he leapt up from where he had been on his knees, watching a beetle, and rushed in behind his mother. The house was immaculate. The furniture had already been set up, and the greeting room adorned old, yet cozy things. With all of his dad's work, they were very well off, and he knew there to be two maids and a groundskeeper. He figured one of the maids would be doing to cooking, his mother certainly wouldn't and his father was always working on some project or another. And he was only seven, after all.

There were heavy steps behind him, and he spun to see David walking in, dropping a bag to the floor and handing over his. He smiled almost-kindly, peering over his rectangular glasses. "Your room is upstairs, I trust you'll be able to find it."

You could almost see the smoke left in his tracks.

He pounded up the stairs and jogged down the hall, opening doors left and right to find his room. Recognizing his stuff in the door at the end of the hall, directly across the bathroom, he threw himself inside and slammed the door behind him. He rushed to the other end, where there was a decently sized window looking out onto the drive and the lake. Seen in the corner of the window, he could spot a tree perfect for climbing. His father was walking down the drive towards the house, he had probably just locked up the car.

He tugged off his jacket, but chose to leave his gloves on. He had ripped off the fingers and rather liked to keep them on even in warmer weather. He turned around and looked about the room. From his position by the window, the door was in the left corner next to a closet in the wall across from him. In the wall to his right, there was his dresser in the far corner and his bed, a small lamp on the dresser. As was a portable heater/fan. He suspected it (the dresser) and the closet already held all of his clothes and whatnot. The wall to his left had his bookshelf, with all of his books already on it, and a large lamp in the corner closest to him. There was no overhead light, but that was okay.

He tossed his bag onto the bed and went to inspect the order of his books on the shelf, pausing to hang his jacket on the hook in the door. The top row held children's story books, and a few low-level novella's, but all the others held his father's old textbooks. He was seven, and very smart for his age due to his upbringing. There were countless high school and college textbooks on computers, technology, biology, robotics, chemistry, and even some theory books on things like cyborgs. A few of the books were even written by David Elster, his own father! Of course, he couldn't read most of this stuff yet, it was very hard to understand. But occasionally his dad would help him work out the pictures and diagrams.

He turned then to the closet, dragging open the door and looking inside. A few jumpers were hung, and a shelf near the top held a very few toys. A plastic drawer-cabinet held supplies for school. The closet was otherwise bare. He had never really liked having very many things, he just liked to explore, and try to be as smart as his dad. Computers and robotics interested him very much. Though oddly enough, with his father being their creator, they had never had a Synth. Perhaps the only downside of being so isolated was that he might not be able to go the lab as often. That was where Doctor Millican would allow him to observe all of the Synthetics. Professor Hobb wasn't as kindly, and Leo only really knew him by name.

Thinking back on the room, Leo figured the only thing he would need is a desk to work at, and for his computer.

There was a light knock on his door, interrupting his musings. "Come in," he called. In stepped a middle-aged lady wearing an old blue dress with a faded apron. She smelled like toast, and there were a few traces of yellow smears on the apron.

She smiled kindly down at him, human green eyes twinkling, "Afternoon, Mr. Elster. Your parents are enjoying tea in the dining room. Your father wishes you to eat an early dinner. I've made grilled cheese and there are chips in the kitchen, if you want them. He's instructed me to tell you that you must eat before exploring."

He wrinkled his brow, this lady was being awfully nice for having just met him. People usually got nasty when he talked, they thought he made things up, said he pretended to be too smart for being so young. She was obviously older though, than the kids that poked fun. Just to be safe, he figured he wouldn't talk much to her.

So he smiled politely back and recalled the names his father had given him. He wouldn't be seeing much of the maid that was Mother's caretaker, so he used the other. "Thank you, Ms. Belle. I'll be down in a minute."

Looking delighted, she smiled, and was about to say something before he continued: "You can just call me Leo."

She nodded and smiled again, "Okay, Leo."

* * *

 **So idk why I held back Leo's name until the end, since it was obvious who "he" was. But I did, so deal with it. Description of the house, and the scene where Leo was looking out the window came from the aforementioned episode six memories.  
** **Please review, tell me everything you think about it! I expect that since season one just ended, there aren't many fans, so when people read this it will probably be done, or close to it. Speaking of which, updates will probably be slow because school starts in two days; but bc of the previous sentence I don't think that will matter. Either way still give me your thoughts! Any questions, just ask :)**

 **~Rowis12**


	2. A New Mom

**One year later…(Leo is 8)**

He was working on tying the end of the second piece of rope in when his father's voice drifted across the lawn. "Leo! Come in a moment, will you?"

Abandoning his project, Leo stood up and brushed the dirt off the knees of his trousers before lightly jogging up to the house. He glanced back at his project. Behind it, the lake shimmered orange in the late afternoon sun and a few squirrels chased each other around the water.

"Dad?" he called, turning back into the house.

"The lab!" His gruff voice shouted back. He had made the entire basement into his private Synthetics and robotics lab. Because Leo was too young to be in the lab long, he had been given the entire attic as his space for whatever he wanted. Leo planned to turn it into his own private world when he was older.

"What's up?" Leo asked, pounding down the stairs and halting at the end of the small hallway. Whiteboards and papers and notes were strewn all over, as were tools and bits of technology. There was an operating table in the center of the room that he used to repair broken Synths, or sometimes work on new designs. There was a body-Synth, Leo figured-under a white cloth.

David smiled gently. "I know things have been pretty rough lately, especially with your mother and her…condition."

Completely caught off guard by the subject, Leo was thrown into a memory. _It had happened about five months ago. Leo had been playing with his plane, flying it up and down the staircases. He had just been running down the stairs, about to land it on the bottom of the banister when he stopped dead in his tracks. A faint shouting noise became louder, and he had frozen to see his mother come tearing into the room at the bottom of the stairs, dragging her caretaker with her. She, too, had been shouting. Suddenly, Beatrice collapsed and was screeching on the floor, trying to shake the maiden off. David came flying into the room and dropped down, grabbing her shoulder and together they tried to subdue her._

 _"_ _I want Leo! I want Leo!" she kept shouting._

 _Leo took a step back in shock. When his mom fell real ill and they had moved here, she had at first been very distant. Lately though, he hadn't been allowed to see her and she had desperately wanted her child. She had been moved to a room downstairs near to her caretakers'._

 _The maid suddenly leapt up and walked away, and his father held Beatrice on the floor in a tight embrace, murmuring words of comfort. David had looked up to see Leo standing there, clutching the banister. As he muttered to his wife, he stared up at his son. No tears, no reassuring smile or even a shake of his head. Just staring sadly…_

"Leo?"

Leo jolted from the memory, and David gave him an odd look. "Sorry," Leo muttered. "What'd you say?"

His father grew excited now, rushing over to the table and grasping the edge of the cloth. "Things have been rough lately, and the maids are very busy taking care of your mother. I can't spend time with you because of work. So I made you something…"

In a flurry of white, the cloth had been torn of and was spiraling to the floor. Leo blinked and heard the sound of a Synth powering up, and tried to take in the sight in front of him.

She was a Synth, obviously. She was Asian and had semi-long, straight black hair. She wore a black dress with a pattern of what appeared to be small white flowers. A light-weight blue jacket was unbuttoned, and she had plain black shoes. Her skin was pale and beautiful, and she appeared to have makeup on. Light reddish lipstick and black eye makeup.

Her vibrant green eyes stared at Leo. But it felt different than other Synths. They all had blank, emotionless stares. Uncaring, even. Her eyes were same in color, but spoke volumes. She seemed to be trying to drink in every detail of Leo. She smiled softly; a real smile, not the simple act that other Synths twitched into.

"This is Mia," Leo heard his father mutter, and saw him in the corner of his eye. David took a step back and crossed his arms, examining his work.

"Hello, Leo." Mia said. It sounded like a standard Synth greeting, but there was also something a bit…deeper.

"Hello, Mia." Leo automatically replied. Her smile widened slightly.

"Mia is a new creation of mine," David explained. "She is a Synth, yes, but she's special. She's also a bit human. She can feel emotion and pain. Love, happiness, sadness, even things like anger, loss, envy. She is going to be looking after you from now on. She'll do whatever you ask, within reason, and she will be taking over as you tutor." School was too far away, so Leo had been homeschooled since they moved.

Leo knew it was wrong. Synths couldn't feel of course! But, there was something different about Mia, something…special. He figured that with his dad's genius, you could give consciousness to a robot. Maybe he could get to know her for awhile, see if she was a bit human. If she was a robot, she couldn't judge how smart he is. She couldn't call him freak, couldn't pick on him for having a nutter for a mum…maybe she could be his friend!

Deciding to believe his father for now, Leo held out his hand. "Nice to meet you, Mia." He said confidently.

She smiled softly and shook his hand, "Nice to meet you, Leo."

Leo glanced at David, who nodded, looking enthralled. "Mia, do you wanna come help me with a project outside?"

"I'd be delighted."

Excited now at the prospect of a real friend, Leo grabbed her hand and dragged her up the stairs, running over to the large oak by the lake. From its largest branch hung two ropes, one tied through a hole in a wooden board. The other rope hung down, unattached. It had been what Leo was working on when his father called him.

Leo dropped her hand and pointed to the board and rope. "I can't get the other end tied properly. Can you help?"

"Of course." She kneeled and easily slipped the rope through the other hole, tying a knot so it would hold. Standing back up, she tugged on the ropes to test their sturdiness. "Want me to push you?"

Leo nodded excitedly, leaping into the seat of his new homemade swing, and kicking his legs happily. Mia walked to the front of the swing, and pulled it back by the ropes, letting him go. Leo swung back, the wind tousling his hair. He swung back forward, and Mia pushed on the board, sending him back again. Leo smiled broadly. He had been really very little the last time his father had taken him to a swing. "Higher, higher!" He laughed, his young voice piercing the still air.

Mia smiled, an actual, real smile, and pushed him again.

 *****Short time skip-Leo and Mia had been swinging for a good two hours, until...*****

Leo waited until the swing was at its highest point, and let go, letting himself fly through the air. "Leo!" he heard Mia gasp worriedly. Leo peddled his arms wildly, laughing in the air before crashing down into the dirt. He gasped as a rough pain stung his right knee, curling back up into a sitting position. His knee was scraped, and red with welling blood.

Completely unfazed by the pain thanks to an adrenaline rush, Leo grinned up at Mia through his messy hair. She looked worried. "Does it hurt?" she fretted.

He shook his head, holding out his hand for her help to stand. Instead, she scooped him up into her arms, holding him close.

His breath caught in surprise and she speed-walked back up to the drive and into the house. She went to the main living room and set him on the couch, before leaving and returning a moment later with a band-aid and bowl of water in her hand. Leo's brows knitted in confusion, before he felt a sudden sense of lethargy overcome him and a pain grow in his knee. The adrenaline was wearing off, he realized. Tears stung his eyes and he blinked at Mia, who dampened a c cotton ball and cleaned the wound, then kneeled and smiled gently at him, placing the band-aid over the scrape.

"All better?" she asked.

Leo sniffled, "Thanks."

Leo paused a moment to think, chewing on an idea. "Can you…can you read to me?" he asked a little breathlessly. He couldn't remember the last time his dad had read with him, and he really wanted to read "The Time Machine" by H.G. Wells, but it was sometimes too difficult to get through and understand fluently on his own.

She smiled, "Of course."

He grinned and rushed up the stairs, skidding in his room and taking a book off the top shelf, before running back downstairs and leaping onto the couch, where Mia was sitting. The fireplace to the left crackle and sparked merrily. He handed her the book, and she opened it to the first page. Pulling his knees up, Leo missed the first sentence trying to decide whether or not to sit how he wanted. Slowly, unsurely, he curled up into her side, tucking his head onto her shoulder.

"… _His grey eyes shone and twinkled, and his usually pale face was flushed and animated. The fire burned brightly…"_

Maybe…maybe Mia could be his mom now. Leo curled closer to her, sighing contentedly. He felt no heartbeat, and her skin was cold, but Leo decided at that moment that it wasn't blood or a heart that made you human.

* * *

 **The idea of Leo swinging with Mia, having a hurt knee, and having Mia read to him were all bits of memory in S1EP6. They were three separate memories, but I decided to just string them up together.  
My plan so far: The next three chapters will take place two years after this. They will be relatively shorter, and be the intro of Fred, Niska, and Max. (In that order.) After that will be one or two chapters on all of their relationships as a family. Then it goes into Beatrice's worsening condition, followed by Leo and his mom's death when Leo is 13. Perhaps a chapter on David operating on Leo. Then waking up, and one or two chapters on his even closer life with the Synths.  
Please review! Any questions, just ask!  
~Rowis12  
**


	3. Fred

**Two years later…(Leo is 10)**

Leo padded lightly down the stairs, running his gloved hand down the banister. He was being childish, he knew, but still. Last night, his father had introduced a new conscience Synth, "Fred". Leo was disappointed, he didn't want another friend, he just wanted it to be him and Mia. He had skulked all night, until this morning, when Mia came up and scolded him for being so rude. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Leo peered out a window, spotting Fred outside. He walked slowly to the door, pulling on his trainers and then stepping out onto the porch, seeing Mia sitting on a chair to his left. She gave him a pointed look, then pointed to Fred, who was down by the lake.

Leo hung his head guiltily, he really wasn't being fair to jealously try and keep away from Fred. He walked over to him, and sat in the grass next to him, looking out at the brown water. The recent rain had stirred up a lot of mud at the bottom of the river running into the pond. He felt Fred glance at him, and teased the grass between his fingers. Spotting stones under the drop to the bank, Leo hesitantly grabbed a handful, and wordlessly passed a few to Fred.

Leo stood back up and flicked his wrist, tossing a stone at the water. It smacked down, and skipped-once, twice, three times across the surface. Leo smiled, and then looked back at Fred. He, too, was standing now, the stones placed in his pocket and a confused look on his face.

"Have you every skipped stones before?" Leo asked dumbly. Realizing that, technically, Fred was only a day old, Leo grew red in the face and looked properly ashamed. "Sorry." He whispered.

He saw Fred shift, before he smiled gently. "It's okay. Show me how." His voice was very deep. Leo smiled, and for the first time got a proper look at his new friend. Fred was wearing a dark mustard-yellow, hooded jumper with the sleeves rolled up, and plain jeans. He was African-American, with a broad nose and face, but a "gentle giant" sort of look to him. His black hair was very short, and close-cropped. His green Synth eyes were twinkling, and his build very strong looking.

Leo picked a stone, and Fred pulled one from his pocket, watching Leo carefully. "It's simple really," Leo said, all frustration with Fred's mere existence forgotten. "You have to use a flat one, and hold it like this. Throw it sideways at the water, snapping your wrist. Try to skim the top of the water when the stone hits. The water's really calm today, so it's easy to get a good three or four skips out of it." Leo demonstrated, again getting the stone to bounce three times.

He turned back to Fred, who was grinning at him. Fred pulled back his elbow and tossed the stone. Leo watched it, wide-eyed with awe. The stone skipped six times before sinking with a _sploosh!_

"Wow!" Leo crowed, "Six whole jumps!" He turned to him and smiled.

Fred smiled right back, "This is fun." He said simply.

* * *

 **Right, like I said, the chapters introducing Fred, Niska, and Max will be a lot shorter. The memory is S1EP6 just showed Fred smiling by the pond, so I decided to take it this way and have them skip stones. Thought it was a cute chapter  
Please review! Any questions, just ask!  
** **~Rowis12**


	4. Niska

**One month later…**

"Niska?" Leo shouted and he tramped down the stairs, jumping the last few and clutching his notebook to his chest. "There you are!" he said, delighted to see Niska come out from the dining room. Six days ago, David had created another conscience Synth, Niska. She seemed to have a taking to books, and downloaded a data base of school textbooks. She quickly took over the roll of Leo's homeschooler, giving Ms. Belle and the other maid more time to focus on caring for Beatrice. Lately, Mia had been making meals and Fred and Leo tried their best to help care for the house.

And Leo had been much more accepting of a new Synth friend this time. Fred was amazing, he figured Niska would be too. She was, so far at least. And Mia was still his acting mother, and just as close to Leo as she had been before Fred. And it was even better now, because Fred and even the relatively new Niska were so close that they were more like siblings than friends.

Leo took a moment to take in her appearance. Her blonde hair was cut nicely to just below the pit of her arm, and her lips were a soft pink. Her green Synth eyes were sharp and glaring, but held a kindness only Leo and the other Synths saw. She wore tight blue jeans and black boots, with a nice blue jumper.

Noticing his mathematics notebook, Niska pulled a chair at the table. "Need help?" she asked. Leo nodded and plopped into the chair next to her, handing her a red pen and pulling out his pencil, flipping to the problem he had been working on. Numbers and notes were scribbled all over the page.

Niska immediately began to show where he went wrong, but Leo was distracted. He could hear Fred playing for Mia in the living room, he loved music. Piano and strings were his choices of instrument, and he really was spectacular. At the moment, Leo recognized a tune on the violin. He absently wondered if he could get Mia to play piano, they would sound rather nice together, and Mia seemed like the piano type to him.

"Leo!" Niska said sharply, and he winced. Niska was just as delightful as Fred and Mia, but was more like a rose than anything. Soft and beautiful, but with a few thorns here and there.

"Sorry," Leo muttered, turning back to the problem. He studied the notes Niska had just scribbled down, and re-solved the problem, looking back to Niska to see if he was right.

She studied his work and nodded, "Good job, I'm proud of you." She said warmly.

Niska lifted her head to look at Leo, and smiled a kindly smile.

* * *

 **Wow, this one was even shorter than Fred's! But anyway, I decided to through in that bit about Fred's music, bc (and I can't remember, but I think it was 1.07 that he said this) he said that he liked music. That's also why I put that Niska had a liking for books. Her helping with what appeared to be math was from the memories in S1EP6, so I put them together and made her Leo's teacher. Fred said that Max liked sports, so I think I already know what I'm doing for next chapter...  
Also, btw, I won't have any scenes of David 'hanging out' with the others, bc (as Fred said in 1.07), "He taught [them] very little. As soon as we were made, he grew tired of us. Just like all of his creations; once complete, onto the next project." He also said that he made them learn things, so besides Niska downloading school stuff, they're going to learn from and with Leo.  
Also, ik that Niska said that she was nine when she was created (ep?), but that makes no sense to me. Their bodies don't age, they were created with adult bods. And while they have humanity, they don't have actual human brains that grow and age. Their knowledge simply matures with their experience over time. So yeah, not happening. Of course, Max will still be in the "little brother" role to Leo tho.  
** **Please review! Any questions, just ask!  
~Rowis12**


	5. Max

**One month later…**

Leo stood up at his father's call, dismissing the three Synths confused looks with a wave of his hand. Mia had been talking to him while Niska read and Fred played cello. "I'll be back in a minute." He murmured, trotting down the basement stairs into the lab.

"Dad?" Leo pushed open the door, peering inside. He had that manic glint of success in his eye. Guessing what was happening, Leo never-the-less stood by to listen to what his father had to say. For the fourth time in the past year and a half, there was a body under a white cloth on the table.

Noticing his son's demeanor, David chuckled slightly. He tugged off the cloth with an air of bravado, to reveal a Synth laying on the table. He was African American and had a kindly, innocent face. He wore jeans and simple trainers and a grey tee with a black jacket over top. Like Leo often wore, he adorned thing cloth gloves with the fingers torn off.

"This is the last one, I promise." David assured. "Of course, all of the conscience ones I made had the full Synth database, plus emotion. That's all Fred and Niska had, plus Niska's extended database on school work. Mia had thousands of pages more of code, so that she could be a more suitable full-time caretaker for you. Like I gave her more knowledge, I've decided to give a little bit less to him. Through experience, they learn. So I've taken some of the Synth coding from him, and decided that you and the others will help teach him. He of course knows basics, just less of the more complicated codes and-"

Leo cut him off quite abruptly, "What's his name?"

"Max."

Leo smiled down at Max, already taking a liking to the idea of him being a tad bit less knowledgeable than the others. He would be like…a little brother.

His father reached down and tapped the area under his chin, and the sound of him powering up filled the silent room. His eyes opened and he immediately had a smile on his face. His body bent at the waist, and he sat up.

Leo smiled gently, "Hey there, Maxie. My names Leo, do you wanna go play with me and some friends?"

His smile grew, and Leo felt warmed. There was something so…innocent about Max. "Hello, Leo. I'd love to, but first can I meet your friends?"

"Well, duh." Leo said playfully. He held out his hand and helped Max stand, even though he didn't need it. David smiled and watched as Leo pulled Max by the hand out of the room and up the stairs.

When they reached the top of the stairs, the other three Synths were already standing. Mia smiled kindly at Max, and then turned to Leo, "We heard everything David said." She walked forward and held out a hand, "My name is Mia." Max took her hand and shook it gently.

"Fred, and pleased to meet you, Max." Fred said, stepping forward and stating his name.

Niska stepped forward a bit, too. "Niska." She said curtly, but not unkindly.

Max smiled that wide, innocently happy smile of his. "It's nice to meet you, Mia, Fred, and Niska." He said, nodding to each respectively as he said their names.

Leo smiled, then pulled Max towards the front door. "Why don't we play a game of football for a bit? I've got a ball on the porch."

When he stepped out the door into the crisp autumn air, Leo pointed where Max should go and allowed the others to follow him as he rooted around the chairs for the ball. He pulled it out, an old tattered thing he had found by the aged barn behind the trees by the crystal blue lake. A cold breeze blew and he shivered.

Jumping the porch steps, Leo jogged up to the forming circle of his friends, leaves crunching beneath his feet. He dropped it and trapped it with his foot, glancing up to see Max with his head cocked.

"Okay, Max, it's really simple actually. We're just gonna pass the ball between us, so try to use the inside of your foot and plant your other to aim where you want to kick. Watch how they stop the ball, and jump in when you're confident." Leo demonstrated by passing to Mia, who passed to Niska, who passed to Fred. Fred popped the ball into the air, where Leo caught it against his chest and trapped it with his foot. He glanced up at Max, "You ready Max?" He asked. Max smiled and nodded.

Leo passed it and Max trapped it with his foot, before aiming and kicking it perfectly back to Leo. "Nice kick, Max!" Leo said cheerfully.

Max smiled proudly. "Thank you, Leo."

* * *

 **Wow, this one was way longer than I expected it to be! I'm a bit anxious for the next one, no clue how to approach it...Anyway, I got the idea of them playing soccer (football, they're in the UK), from the scene in S1EP7, and from Fred saying that Max likes sports. The only memory scene for Max was him "waking up", so I used that.  
Please review! Any questions, just ask!  
~Rowis12  
**


	6. They're People

**Right, so this chapter is short too. It's really hard to try and write longer chapters, since they're just flashes through Leo's life with the Synths. Anything I try to add seems out of place and distracting from the purpose of the chapter. Sorry :c  
This chapter is called "They're People..." and the next will be "...Not _Things_ ". They're kind of like two parts of a same chapter, but the next one take place awhile later, so I made it separate. But just to clear confusion, that's why the two chapters coordinate titles.**

* * *

"Are you guys coming up here, or what?!" Leo shouted down the stairs. He had told the others that he had a surprise for them, and they were currently waiting in his room, sitting crowded on the bed. Dusty light filtered through the large window. It seemed that no matter what Leo did, there was always dust floating around.

Leo stepped out of the attic hall into the entrance room, hearing Max's voice drift up the stairs, "Coming, Leo!". Soon, all four "Synths" were in the attic room that Leo had turned into his personal workshop.

"What's all this about?" Niska asked, the slightest hint of suspicious irritation in her voice.

"Well, I know that your guys' sleeping situations aren't the most...comfortable." Leo began, ignoring Niska's eye roll. As Synths, they didn't really need physical comfort. "So I've been working on a solution for a while now..." He stepped away from the hall, and they went through to investigate. Leo followed them into another main room, where four doors to other smaller rooms were swung wide open so that the space within could be seen. There was a quiet gasp and Max's smile was exceptionally wide.

While previously every room had been dedicated to Leo's use, each was made into a different style bedroom. "The two on the right have a connection bathroom, same with the two on the left." Leo said, watching their pleased facial expressions. Of course, they also didn't need bathrooms. But still, it was the principle of the matter.

Because Leo had the attic, and David the basement, Mia, Niska, and Fred had been stuffed into small, uncomfortable spare rooms on the first floor, and Max sharing Leo's room. Leo didn't like that the other three were using the spare rooms, he didn't want them feeling unwanted, or like normal Synths. He decided that because they were so much more than servants, and more of a family, that they deserved to be treated as such. Leo also knew that all they technically needed was chairs to charge in, but figured they might like the idea of having their own bedrooms. **(Get the title now?)**

The two on the right were for Fred and Max. Fred's had a music stand and several cases with string instruments. Max's had a computer, soccer ball, and books filled with world facts and completely random information for him to peruse, including "How To" books. The two on the left were designated for Mia and Niska. Niska's had several bookshelves loaded with all types of good reads, and Mia's had several easels and a drawer filled with paints. All four rooms had a simple bed, plush chair, closet (with their respective clothes), charging cord, and window. Niska walked briskly from her room back to Leo, and the others joined soon behind.

"This is pointless, you know," she began slowly, and for a moment Leo looked crestfallen, "But all the same, is extremely appreciated." She glanced at the other three, who all nodded. Leo grinned, and Mia hugged him, calling him 'sweet'. Fred was excited, already planning to move a piano into the second main room they were currently standing in.

Leo turned to Max, who was smiling, yet seemed a bit...off. "I'm going to miss sharing a room with you." He admitted.

"It's okay, Maxie! We'll see just as much of each other, all five of us. And if you want to stay with me, you're always welcome.

Max brightened immediately, the sadness melting away. "Thank you so much, Leo. It really is wonderful."

* * *

 **Aw, I love Max and Leo (friendly, no ship) fluff. I know that Leo has a close relationship with all of them, but he is even closer to Mia bc of the "mom" roll, and Max bc of the "little brother" roll. The main Mia fluff was in her chapter, "A New Mom"  
Shoutout to imtheonlyonly . (S)he was the first commenter, and I didn't expect any reviews for a long time, the fandom for HUMANS is really small (hopefully just for now). Really glad I emailed tho, there's already another fanfiction up besides mine!  
On a different note, school started the nineteenth, that's why I wasn't updating. I've been scribbling out some chapter designs though, so it makes it easier to write when I can. I may be able to get another chapter up this weekend, but idk. If not, then next weekend. I'm really busy thanks to marching band, and taking eleventh grade classes in ninth grade :/  
** **Please review! Any questions, just ask!  
~Rowis12**


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